Fire Always Burns
by Superdinosaur
Summary: Fire once was a murderer, raider and all round ass hole. But in an attempt to turn his life around, he became a courier. Yet, unbeknown to him, it would change his life forever.
1. Baby Steps

**Fire Always Burns**

Fire woke up, with a pain in his head unlike anything he had ever felt before, as if he had been stabbed in the head by one of a Deathclaws many sharp nails. He sat up and opened his eyes, the light entering them like acid, causing him to squint as he heard an unfamiliar voice. "You're awake." Said the strange elderly voice. His vision finally adjusting, he looked at the man, who was wearing a blue shirt. The man had a moustache which looks quite cool. "Your name. Can you tell me your name?" Said the elderly man. "Just call me... Fire." Chuckled Fire. "Well, not the name I'd have given you. My name's Doctor Mitchell, welcome to Goodsprings."

"How... How did I get here? My head hurts, and the last thing I remember was staring down the barrel of a gun." Fire asked the Doctor. The doctor sighed as he told Fire his story. "You were shot two times in the head. Someone must've wanted something from you, because you were picked clean. Our 'friendly neighbourhood robot' happened to stroll by as this attack happened and waited until they left. There were 3 men. A man in a black and white suit, which we found out... lives in New Vegas. When the men left, that robot fished you out of your grave and bought ya' here."

For the next twenty minutes Mitchell performed some run of the mill psychological tests and then sent Fire packing. He gave fire a 9M pistol, a Pip-Boy 3000, some ammo and some medical supplies. When Fire left the Doctor's house, the light of the Mojave sun almost blinded him. He shielded his eyes with his arm as his eyes once again adjusted to the rays of ultra violet death. Fire looked around until he saw what a bar was obviously. He began to walk towards the bar, the dust kicking up underneath his thick leather duster. He opened the door and saw a woman with her pet dog.

"Hello, are you Sunny Smiles? Doc Mitchell said you could help me get back on my feet." Fire confidently told the woman. Sunny nodded, but then spoke, "I hope you know how to fire a gun, because I really need to go sort out some geckos that are attacking our water source. C'mon Cheyenne." She went to head for the door when Fire stopped her. "Hey, what if I gave you a hand? I'd be at least some help then." "Yeah, I s'pose. C'mon, let's go." They both left the bar and started heading towards the town's water source.

_Fire. Death. Explosions. Blood. Gore. Children were running, hanging on to there parent's as they fled from the exploding town. Some children were even holding onto the corpses of dead parents, in an attempt to get them to move. Fire walked through the street of fleeing people, smirking at what he caused. Maybe, he could be worse. Maybe, if he had the power... he could destroy anything or anyone he seemed fit. "Why..? Why did you do this" Cried a teenager, who was barely 15, "You're a monster. A FUCKING MONSTER!" Fire continued to smirk as he slammed his hand against the teenager's neck, who struggled to get free from the strong grip. Fire squeezed on the kid's neck, as he spoke under his mask, "Yes, I damn well fucking am." He then proceeded to-_

"Hey Fire, we're here." Muttered Sunny. Cheyenne let out a little bark as Fire shook himself awake from his flashback. He hated them but he just couldn't stop them at all. "Okay, let's just go in there, kill the geckos and get out. Simple." Fire replied, for once feeling a sense of worry, "Look, let me do this. I can tell you love your dog, and I couldn't live with myself if something happened. I'll do it." He smiled, which he hadn't done for a while before walking forward towards the supply. He instantly heard a scream of a gecko, and saw it as well. He quickly aimed and fired at the creatures head, killing it instantly. He quickly cleared the area and then, once done, walked back to Sunny, covered in blood.


	2. Snap, Snap, Snap

"Done?" Asked Sunny, a slight smirk plastering her face. Fire just looked at her with a purely straight face, before nodding. They started off towards Goodsprings and hardly said anything on the way back. All Fire could think about was his flashback... how could he do that to someone so young? They finally arrived at Goodsprings 2 hours later, just as it started getting dark. As they finally reached the inn, Fire let out a sigh of relief as he pushed the door open, to be greeted by shouts.

He walked into the other room to see a man wearing an armoured vest on top of a blue jacket. He figured out this man was a Powder Ganger, just before he shouted out, "You tell me where Ringo is, or I swear to god me and my Powder Gangers are going to burn this place down-" Fire lost it, and without thinking spun the man around. He swung a right hook straight into the man's jaw as hard as he could. He felt the jaw crack underneath his fist, as he grabbed the man's neck with his left hand. Fire felt someone grabbing on to his side in an attempt to rip him off the man, but Fire pushed the unknown person away. He swung another right hook in to the man's jaw before he heard a revolver's click, and the feeling of cold steal pushing through his long, blonde hair. He slowly turned around, and saw another blue shirted man pointing a gun now directly at his forehead.

"Well, if you're going to shoot, then you better not-" With the speed of an irradiated antelope, Fire ducked down and grabbed the random man's wrist. The man went to send an uppercut downwards towards Fire, but he quickly blocked it and ripped the revolver from his hand, turning it back on him. Fire smirked as he pulled the trigger, blasting the Powder Ganger's brain onto the bar behind him. Suddenly, felt a strong pain in the back of his head, Joe Cobb having hit him in the back of the head with a bottle. Having stumbled down, Fire got back up and turned to see Joe Cobb looking at the weapon he hit Fire with, mumbling under his breath "The was supposed to fuckin' break!" Fire snapped again, and sent his aim to Joe's knee, pulling the trigger. Joe's bone and blood sprayed the floor, as the last person evacuated the bar.

"ARGH! YOU FUCKING ARSE-"Shouted Joe, but without thinking, Fire shouted back "YOU SHUT THE FUCK UP YOU WORTHLESS PIECE OF RAT SHIT! I'VE BEEN IN THIS TOWN FOR 5 HOURS AND I'VE ALREADY HAD ENOUGH!" Fire threw the revolver at the wall, the barrel denting from the connection. Fire quickly grabbed Joe's throat with his left hand again, and lifted him onto a table, squeezing as hard as he could. Fire swung punch after punch into Joe's face, as he slowly suffocated and drowned in his own blood, building up inside his throat. At last, Sunny ran into the building and tried to pull Fire off the man, but to no avail. Fire kept on punching what was now a lifeless corpse, venting out. Doc Mitchell ran into the building, having heard gunshot's, to see the throttling and Sunny's useless attempts to stop it. The doctor quickly got out a homemade sedative inside a syringe, and injected it into Fire's arm, the effects working almost immediately.


	3. Whiskey, huh?

_Fire cackled a maniacal laugh as he incessantly stabbed the man. How dare he touch me? Thought Fire, as he continued to stab at the long since dead corpse. Again and again, after every stab, blood sprayed onto Fire's face, then he looked up to see a woman, named Jane. He'd been following Jane. Fire smirked as he stood up, staring at the woman trying who was to help children escape the burning village. Fire let out one last roar as Jane turned around, and saw what she thought an ordinary stalker, drenched in blood, standing in front of a cut up teenage body. She now knew he was far past insane, but it was too late. The knife was already flying towards her. It slammed into her neck, puncturing the jugular, blood spraying out of her, fast._

Fire sat up, breathing heavily. He wished they'd stop, but he didn't think they ever would. He looked around his surroundings and saw that he was locked in a bathroom. He stood up, and looked at his still blood-drenched fists. He walked over to the sink and turned the tap, washing his hands with the irradiated filth. Once done, Fire walked towards the door and twisted the handle to see it locked. He looked down to his Pip-Boy, wondering if he could use it to tell the time. He searched and finally found it. It was 02:37 AM. He knew he had to get out; he couldn't stay in there for another 5 hours. He looked around, and finally realised that the only way out was the door. Breaking it down. He sighed as he took a step back. "3, 2, 1!" He said to himself, before sending a kick to the door. Nothing happened.

He knew he wasn't strong enough at the moment. He had to tap into his rage, the one he had been blocking out for years. The one he used against that asshole of a man in the bar. He thought about what he did. How bad it was, how angry he got. Finally, when he had all of his pent up aggression, he sent another heavy boot to the door, it swinging open, almost off of its hinges. He instantly remembered where he was. It's the doctor's house. He ran to the door as he heard the doctor shout "Who's there?"

He began to walk out of Goodsprings, knowing he wouldn't be accepted there anymore. He walked and walked, when he finally arrived at a little shack on the road towards Primm. He opened the metal door and looked around the dark room. He searched the counter and found an odd looking bottle cap, with a star on it. He slid it into his pocket, pushed everything off the desk and decided, this was good a place as any to sleep. He lied down, and drifted off into another nightmarish sleep.

After his slumber, he thought he still wasn't ready for any communication. He travelled 3 days, having completely passed Primm and kept walking. On the third day, he finally ran out of food.

"Jesus... out of food, out of water... need to find some." Muttered Fire to himself. He looked around, and looked up a mountain to see a large monstrous statue, towering over the Mojave. If it's still intact, someone must be looking after it. So that's where he headed, to a giant statue. When he, at last, arrived at the top, he sighed a sigh of relief to a community, with people. He walked in, under the gigantic statue, and straight to what he thought was a bar. Walking past the guy at the front, he sat at the bar, across from a lady.

When he finally received his whiskey, he took a secret, sly look at the woman, seeing her face. He thought she was one of the most beautiful women he had ever laid eyes on, her skin perfect, her eyes perfect, her hair... perfect. "Whiskey, huh? I like it too." Said the woman, a smirk plastering her face. "Name's Cass, what about you?"


	4. Tis but a flesh wound, maybe?

Fire sat with the woman and chatted for an hour or two. They had a lot to talk about, with both their pasts. They spoke about Cass' parents, Fire's maniacal past... and anything else. They spoke for the sake of speaking.

"Why don't you come with me? You said that you're bored here, and it wouldn't hurt to have some company myself."He said with a hidden sense of worry from the impending rejection about to come.

"Sure, why not. I'd love to get out of this shithole. Let's go get some rest, then we'll leave, okay?" Fire just nodded to the now smiling woman, before she headed off to her room. Fire left the building and slumped off his bag. He unhooked the sleeping bag hooked to the top and rolled it out. As he got into the uncomfortable bag, he smiled. He was leaving tomorrow with a beautiful woman... but then it hit him. He is leaving tomorrow with a beautiful woman... that might get killed. He didn't get much sleep that night, his mind full of these thoughts. The sleep he did get were plagued with nightmares about his past, and everything that happened to him.

When Cass got up, she walked into the bar to see Fire sitting there, a drink in his hand. She could tell it was whiskey, before speaking, "You ready then, Fire?" Fire smiled as he got up, necking the final bit of his whiskey before nodding. As they left, Fire made sure his Lever-Action shotgun was loaded. He had a weird feeling something bad was going to happen.

"So, where are we heading, Fire?" Asked Cass. _Even her voice is beautiful, _thought Fire. "We're heading to Primm. Maybe the people there will know about the fuckers who decided to shoot me." He spoke before abruptly stopping, having heard something. He put one finger up against his lip, signifying for Cass to remain quiet, when out of nowhere a laser flew through Cass' hat.

They both jumped behind a broken car, as more lasers flew towards them. Fire looked through the place where the car's window once was, seeing two men in black combat armour, holding Laser Rifles. Fire popped up from behind the car and took aim at one of the men. He fired, and the bullet flew through the air straight into the man's skull. The man's exploded into a mess of blood and gore, it showering his partner. Fire ducked back behind cover as Cass stood up. Her entire torso was exposed as he saw the assailant fire a laser, aimed directly at Cass' chest. It was then as if time slowed for him. He dived at her before he knew what he was doing and pushed her out of the way, knowing she wouldn't have enough time to react to the laser. She hit the floor on her side as Fire stood in the way of the laser, and she aimed at the man. As she fired her Caravan shotgun at the assailant's chest, Fire got hit in the torso by the laser, sending him to the ground.

_There she laid, Jane, the woman he grew up with. The woman, he spent almost all of his time with as a child... the woman who didn't even recognise him. He thought, of all the things he had done... he wouldn't think this would change him. He fell to his knees, the realisation of everything he had ever done to anyone or anything, flashing through his head. He was a monster... he had killed a teenager for trying to talk sense in to him. He had killed a woman he had just decided to follow. He was never going to live down whatever happened to him. He knew he would have to leave DC, try to forget his past, leave everything behind him as to forget it all. As he stood up, getting ready to leave all of this behind him, he felt a sudden sharp pain in his shoulder, and heard the words 'YOU DESERVE THIS' shouted repeatedly at him. He knew what had just happened. He had been literally stabbed in the back._


	5. To Primm

Fire woke up, an immense pain quaking through his entire body, as if he had been dragged through hell itself. He forced his eyes open, as light melted into them. He couldn't recognise anything until he was greeted with a familiar voice. "Thank god you're awake." Said the woman gratefully. He knew it had to be Cass, and he let out a small smile as he regained his sight before saying, "It'll take more than a laser to kill the flames."

They both chuckled as he looked at her. "Where are we?" He queried, it being a place he didn't recognise. It was a hut made of the usual sheet metal material, and he was on the only bed. There was a rusty table with two chairs on the sides, which Cass was sitting at with a bottle of whiskey in her hand. "Just some random hut. Hey, I... Thank you. You didn't need to do that, and we barely knew each other. So, why did you do that?" She asked, looking at him. Just as Fire was about to speak, the door swung open.

The woman walked in and aimed a Caravan Shotgun at Cass, as Cass was the only person the woman could see. "Get up. GET THE FUCK UP!" Shouted the stranger, aiming at Cass. Cass complied, as Fire quietly grabbed his Lever-Action shotgun from it's spot beside the bed. "Give me everything you have. Everything." Cass had no choice but to do as she said. Cass couldn't see what Fire was doing, but neither could the woman. Fire quietly got up, and cocked the shotgun. Before the random woman could react to the sound, Fire had aimed the gun at the back of her head, the barrel against her skin.

"Drop your fucking gun or I swear to god your blood will become a new coat of paint for this shit hut." The woman dropped her gun, and Cass picked it up, as well as her own stuff. Fire signalled for Cass to leave, and as she did, Fire pulled the trigger, releasing a huge amount of blood and gore across the room. As the empty shell hit the ground, and her body slumped against the floor, Fire cocked his gun and put on to his back. Fire left the hut, readjusting his Sheriff Hat, his leather duster dragging across the stranger's corpse.

They began walking towards Primm once more. They was walking for about 7 hours before it hit nightfall. They decided to keep walking, as they could both see Primm in the distance. They shared more information on their travels, and they knew a lot about each other. "So, Fire... what's your real name?" Asked Cass, a cheeky grin across her face as she asked. Fire replied with a blank expression, "It's... Harry." "Harry?" She replied. "I kind of like that name, you know. It's smart." He smiled and nodded a thank you, as they continued to walk.

They were surprised to be greeted by an NCR Soldier warning them that the town had been taken over by escaped convicts. Fire thanked him and they walked into the town, completely ignoring the guards warning, towards the small NCR Camp. They knew no one was awake, so they went into one of the destroyed pale white buildings and set up camp. They shared a few more stories before they both decided to settle down on the torn, dirty mattresses that lay abandoned in the building.

Fire awoke; his chest pain having eased since yesterday. He looked around and saw that Cass was still asleep and he smiled. She looked just as perfect asleep. Her hat was off and her hair was down, and she still looked good. Fire snapped out of his daydream when he heard voices coming from downstairs. He ran his fingers through his dirty, long blonde hair and made his way out of the building. He had never been a big fan of the NCR, but he needed any information they had on the man that shot him.


End file.
